Float control valve



Aug. 23, 1955 s. M. KAss FLOAT CONTROL VALVE Filed March 25, 1950INVENTOR 5amz4eZjl4./Za.88.

United States Patent FLOAT CONTROL VALVE Samuel M. Kass, Philadelphia,Pa.

Application March 25, 1950, Serial No. 151,890

2 Claims. (Cl. 137-447) The present invention relates to float valvesparticularly of the type used as inlet valves in flush tanks of toilets.

A purpose of the invention is to avoid difliculty through leaking andsticking flush tank inlet valves, reducing the wear on the valve andincreasing the service life.

A further purpose is to obtain more positive cutoff action by a flushtank inlet valve.

A further purpose is to prevent the tendency of a plug type rotary valveto bind by urging the valve axially away from its seat while limitingthe extent of axial motion in the direction of urging, preferablyemploying a leaf spring on the small end of the valve plug to urge thevalve away from the binding position.

A further purpose is to permit relief of all upward pull on the floatarm by overtravel.

A further purpose is to provide an inlet pipe connection either from anexternal machine thread or an internal pipe thread on the shank.

Further purposes appear in the specification and in the claims.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate a few only of the numerousembodiments in which my invention may appear, selecting the forms shownfrom the standpoints of convenience in illustration, satisfactoryoperation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

Figure 1 is a central vertical longitudinal section through a flush tankembodying the valve of the invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary plan view partly in centralhorizontal section showing the valve of the invention.

Figure 3 is a central vertical section of the valve of Figure 2 shiftedto open position.

Figure 4 is a section on the line 4--4 of Figure 3.

Figure 5 is a right end elevation of the valve of Figure 2.

Figure 6 is a view corresponding to Figure 5 showing a variation.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary perspective showing a diiferent manner ofmounting the float arm to the valve.

Figure 8 is a side elevation showing a variant construction of thevalve.

Figure 9 is a section on the line 99 of Figure 8.

Figure 10 is a vertical section of a further variant, partly inelevation, and with the float engaging end shifted into the plane of thepaper.

Figure 11 is a central vertical section showing a variant form ofconnection of the inlet water to the valve assembly.

In the drawings like numerals refer to like parts.

Describing in illustration but not in limitation and referring to thedrawings:

A great deal of difliculty has been encountered in flush tank inletvalves through the tendency to leak and to stick or bind. Flush tankinlet valves have also suflered from the failure to provide forovertravel of the float in rising. The present invention is concernedparticularly with the development of a flush tank inlet valve which willgive longer service life without these diificulties.

2,715,910 Patented Aug. 23, 1955 The valve of the invention is also morereadily connected to the inlet pipe, as provision is made for a pipethreaded connection as well as a packing or flange and nut connection.

Figure 1 illustrates a flush tank having water filled to the level 21.For placement purposes, outlet pipe 22 is shown with outlet valve seat23 and stand pipe 24 in accordance with usual practice. The ball valveand its guide and lifting mechanism are eliminated to avoid masking theinlet assembly.

The inlet assembly includes a shank 25 having an external machine thread26, and sealed into the bottom of the flush tank by a flange 27 holdinga gasket 28 pressed into position by a packing nut 30 on the thread 26.A goose neck inlet pipe 31 extends upwardly from the shank and isconnected as by a street-ell 32 with the upper inlet port 33 of inletvalve 34.

Discharge from the inlet valve is by bottom discharge port 35 makingsuitably threaded connection with discharge pipe 36 in the tank.

The usual bleeder pipe 37 connects from the discharge side of the valveto the top of the overflow pipe.

The valve comprises a valve body 38 in which the inlet and outlet portsare provided suitably in opposed relation as best seen in Figure 3. Thebody has an interior rotary tapered valve engaging surface 40 ascommonly used in plug valves.

A rotary tapered plug valve 41 is provided in the body and having avalve opening 42 which communicates between the inlet and outlet portsin the open position corresponding to the dotand-dash lines in Figure 1.

The plug valve has from its smaller end an exteriorly threaded extension43. A washer 44 surrounds the small end of the plug valve and restsagainst the end of the body and a nut 45 on the threaded extension 43engages the washer and holds the plug valve from moving too far out ofthe body.

To prevent binding of the plug valve, it is spring urged axially awayfrom the binding position. This is accomplished by leaf spring 46suitably of any resilient sheet metal, which has an axial projection 47engaging an axial recess 48 in the end of threaded extension 43. Theleaf spring is secured as to the side of the body by screws 50 and tomake the tension of the spring adjustable slotted holes 51 are providedin the spring for the screws as shown in Figure 5.

At the left end the plug valve mounts float arm 53 by screws 54. A float55 suitably of hollow metallic character as well known is secured on theouter end of the float arm as by screw 56. The float arm may if desiredbe bent as shown at 57 to provide the proper angular relation betweenthe height of the water and the closed position of the valve. Oneadvantage of the present device is that the valve can overtravel.

While two screws 54 are shown in the form of Figures 2 to 5 inclusive tomount the float arm on the plug valve, this can be accomplished ifdesired by bending over the end of the float arm beyond the plug valveat 58 as shown in Figure 6 and employing only one screw 54.

If desired the float arm may be a rod 60 as shown in Figure 7 ratherthan a strip. In this case the end of the plug valve may desirably beslotted at 61 to receive a flattened end portion 62 on the float arm,desirably holding the float arm and valve together by a cotter pin 63.

Instead of using the street-ell 32 to make the downward bend, the valvebody may be formed as at 38 in Figures 8 and 9 so that the inlet pipe 31threads directly into the side of the valve body near the upper portion.In this case the spring 46 desirably acts in a slot 64. In this case thethreaded extension is pointed at 48' and engages a recess 47' in thespring. The float arm 60' in this case is carried throughan opening 61'in the end of the valve and held in place by set screw 63.

In some cases it may be' desirable to employ a valve of the type whichmoves along the axis in opening and closing. A valve of this characteris shown in Figure 10 having a valve seat 65 engaged by a valve 66 whichhas a guiding shank 67 moving in a cylinder 68 of the valve body. Thevalve carries a cam pin 70 on the circumference of the shank which isguided to move the valve in and out toward the seat by a cam track orthread 71 as it turns. 7 Theconvention'al manner of connecting the inletto the inlet valve assembly is by an external nut engaging a flanged orpacked pipe as shown in Figure 1. In this case a packing or locking nut72 engages the machine threads 26 on the shank drawing up flange orpacking 73 against the end of the shank. The flange is carried on theend of inlet pipe 74 from the water system.

In some cases it is preferable to avoid the danger of leakage from'theflanged or packed fitting and use a direct threaded connection. For thispurpose shank 25 has an internal pipe thread 75 in addition to theexternal machine thread already described. Thus the plumber can if hedesires thread a pipe 76 directly into the internal thread 75, avoidingthe use of the packing or locking nut 72 and the flanged or packedconnection.

In operation, the plug valve is adjusted before assembly so that it isappreciable play but not sufiicient play to leak. The play should bejust suflicient so that it can be felt by a discriminating touch. Thisadjustment is accomthe float arm is bent until cutoff is obtained at thecorrect height. Bleeder tube 37 is placed in the stand pipe.

The connection from the inlet water system may be made in theconventional manner as shown in Figure 1 or by using the internal threadon the shank as shown in Figure 11.

It will be evident that the device of the invention works veryaccurately to permit cutofi at the correct point without allowingleakage.

In view of my invention and disclosure, variations and modifications tomeet individual whim or particular need will doubtless become evident toothers skilled in the art to obtain all or part of the benefits of myinvention without copying the structure shown, and I, therefore, claimall'such insofar as they fall within the reasonable spirit and scope ofmy claims. 7

Having thus described my invention what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. A flush tank inlet valve comprising a rotary valve body having inletand outlet ports, and having a tapering valve receiving rotary surface,a tapering rotary valve within the body engaging the tapering surface, afloat, a float arm extending transversely to the axis of the valve andinterconnecting the float and the valve, a screw take-up on the smalltapered end of the valve adapted to exert pressure against the body andlimit motion of the valve out of the tapered surface and a spring actingfrom the body against the valve in the axial direction tending to urgethe valve out of the tapering surface as far as permitted by the screwtake-up.

2. A flush tank inlet valve comprising a valve body having a taperedrotary valve receiving surface provided with inlet and outlet ports, atapered rotary plug valve in the tapered surface of the body having apassage which in one position interconnects the ports of the body and inanother position closes the connection, a threaded extension on thesmall end of the valve, a nut on the threaded extension and adapted tolimit motion of the valve away from the body, a leaf spring secured tothe body and exerting pressure on the end of the threaded extension inthe direction to separate the valve and the body, a float aim secured tothe valve and extending transversely to the axis and a float on thefloat arm.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED'STATES PATENTS164,944 Snyder June 29, 1875 334,722 Polle Jan. 19, 1886 520,148 TurnerMay 22, 1894 758,053 Desmarteau Apr. 26, 1904 830,235 Knight Sept. 4,1906 916,954 Murch Mar. 30, 1909 940,127 Campbell Nov. 16, 1909 940,295Willis Nov. 16, 1909 1,089,098 Winkler Mar. 3, 1914 1,177,191 Kurth Mar.28, 1916 1,179,808 Cunningham Apr. 18, 1916 1,246,541 Cahill Nov. 13,1917 1,641,240 Stockholder Sept. 6, 1927 1,727,082 Rayfield Sept. 3,1929 1,885,042 Baldwin Oct. 25, 1932 FOREIGN PATENTS 466,425 GreatBritain May 27, 1937

